THEIR STORIES
Alyona and Ivan
At the beginning of June, 2019, Koshka had two healthy kittens whom we named Alena and Ivan. After a month, we transferred the whole family to our large woodland enclosure where the youngsters very quickly became masters of the new territory.
It was apparent as soon as they were born that the two young animals had quite different characters: Alyona was extremely curious, always exploring and checking things, while Ivan, though no less inquiring than his sister, was much more cautious.
The kittens lived with their parents until they were nine months old, watching and learning all the time.
During the entire rehabilitation process, we strove to keep contact with humans to the very minimum and this bore fruit as Alyona and Ivan developed into fully independent wild animals who actively sought to avoid humans. As soon as we came in to the enclosure to inspect it or change memory cards on the cameras, the young lynx hid from us.
Once they were ten months old, we removed the young animals from their parents so that we could be sure that they were able to hunt for themselves. Every time, Alyona and Ivan proved that they were successfully learning important life skills for their future in the wild.
The young animals were released into the wild at the end of August, 2020. Prior to their release, the lynx were fitted with collars, thanks to which the Centre’s team are able to track their location and confirm their mastery of their territory.
JOIN THE LYNX REHABILITATION PROGRAMME
© АНО «Центр изучения и охраны диких кошек» 2020
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